Press Release

From Hacked Drones to Ransomware Identity Theft, Experts Anticipate a Minefield of Security Troubles in the Coming Year

Seattle – October 26, 2017 – DomainTools, the leader in domain name and DNS-based cyber threat intelligence, today announced its top cybersecurity predictions for the coming year. Following a year of headlines littered with ransomware attacks, consumer data breaches, and attacks on infrastructure, DomainTools’ top security experts expect organizations of all sizes and industries to be on the frontline as cybercriminals become more sophisticated and targeted in their attacks. A new DomainTools white paper, "Cybersecurity Outlook for 2018,” outlines cybersecurity trends and their implications for organizations seeking to thwart threats and keep their networks secure.

“Burgeoning trends in anonymization technologies and user privacy interests continue to put pressure on the ability for security professionals to predict, detect, prevent and investigate cybercrime and cyberespionage, effectively making the internet safer for the bad guys and less safe for the rest of us” said Tim Chen, CEO, DomainTools. “However, organizations that prioritize a combination of ongoing security training and technology, have the best chance at successfully defending themselves in the coming year.”

In the coming year, thought leaders from DomainTools expect to see the following trends:

Rise of the Machines

According to DomainTools’ Senior Data Scientist, John Conwell “Since 2015 we've seen a huge uptake in the development of commercial uses for drones, including construction surveying, mine surveying, delivery services, agricultural monitoring, and most recently, disaster and insurance assessment. These devices are guided either by a connected pilot or via an autonomous system; both of which are susceptible to influence or interruption by external actors. Drone manufacturers are in a race right now to create the "GoPro" of the drone industry and security most likely will be an afterthought. Early attacks will probably start out as amateur script kiddies trying to see if they can hack a flying drone, but could evolve into coordinated attacks by professional hackers.”

Nation States Adopt the Tactics of Cybercriminals

“In 2018, we will see an uptick in nation-state level actors involved in what is traditionally considered ‘cybercrime,’” said Kyle Wilhoit, Senior Security Researcher. “Nation states, which are under heavy sanctions will likely increase their ‘cybercriminal’ behavior as a method to supplement cash flow, such as ATM hacks, bank compromises, etc.”

Governments Under Attack

Tim Helming, Director of Product Management predicted that “Next year, we will see a major disruption to a government agency’s online operations. While there have been data breaches, denials of service, and temporary defacement of websites in the past, we predict a more comprehensive attack that cripples an agency’s functions for an extended time period. We know that governments are targets and threat actors are relentless.”

Lack of Net-Neutrality Creates New Targets

Senior Data Scientist, Sean McNee posits that “Deregulation of internet service providers (ISPs) to allow preferential traffic will create a multi-tiered internet system: those who can afford to use VPNs/proxies to get the traffic they want at the speeds they want, and those who cannot. Deregulated data streams will be modified and augmented by ISPs to insert ads or other content – these augmented streams will be quickly compromised and malware will be sent to customers with no way to block it. Moreover, anti-malware software could be directly blocked by these hacked data streams. For reference, think of how the cheap android phones with built-in apps were hacked to steal data from the device without anyone knowing.”

To read more predictions, including data from a recent survey of cybersecurity professionals on what will be keeping them up at night in 2018, visit [link to white paper] to download the full whitepaper.

About DomainTools

DomainTools helps security analysts turn threat data into threat intelligence. We take indicators from your network, including domains and IPs, and connect them with nearly every active domain on the Internet. Those connections inform risk assessments, help profile attackers, guide online fraud investigations, and map cyber activity to attacker infrastructure. Fortune 1000 companies, global government agencies, and leading security solution vendors use the DomainTools platform as a critical ingredient in their threat investigation and mitigation work. Learn more about how to connect the dots on malicious activity at http://www.1081377.com or follow us on Twitter:@domaintools